natalie bookchin's "searching for truth"


i chose natalie bookchin's "searching for truth" for review because i enjoyed her piece
my boyfriend came back from the war "truth", however, was a definite departure
from the experimental narrative structure of "my boyfriend". instead, this piece
was a little bit more satirical, a little bit more socially aggravated.

There is a single column of numbers placed in descending numerical order.
Each links to a different search engine site that may or not have the word "truth"
typed in the search box. i'm not sure exactly how the numbers
correlate with the sites except for the fact that theoretically they approximate
the number of entries spit back by each site based on the query
of "truth". However, when I went to the site, the top four or so, related as
follows: the number of entries found from one link or listed number equaled the
actual number listed above that link or listed number. For the listed numbers
towards the bottom, the number links directly correlated to the entries found at their respective
linked sites.

anyhow, what I interpreted from the piece, or at least what it
provoked, was a commentary on modern day inquiry and exploration via technology/Internet.
even more general is the message that we cannot live or know life through our
computers, though it seems to a certain extent, a lot of people try. we cannot find
real meaning through them, nor can we use them as proxy or host. this also
raises issues of our need for immediate gratification, and how our remoteness from
from real life has distanced us from finding true meaning in life


natalie's pieces, as many other net artworks do, play with you. it is often about the interaction
and a game you must engage in. but they are much less straightforward
and they either confound, mislead, or provoke. bookchin's correlation is clear, but her
aim less so. but that is the beauty of this piece and others like it, i.e. alexi shulgin's desktop is
or jennie holzer's please change beliefs

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